


To Kirkwall

by CaptainDemetrios



Series: Cuddle Squad [1]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II
Genre: Carver is doing his best and hes tired, Eli gets sick, Gen, Illnesses, On the ship to kirkwall
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-12
Updated: 2018-03-12
Packaged: 2019-03-30 11:16:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13950429
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaptainDemetrios/pseuds/CaptainDemetrios
Summary: The boat to Kirkwall was far from ideal. For Eli, it was almost as deadly as the Blight.





	To Kirkwall

Looking back, Eli wondered if he really had gotten sick on the ship, or if the disease had been in him for much longer and the ship was only the first rest he’d gotten to notice it.

They were packed into the underbelly of the ship more tightly than cargo. Cargo would’ve mattered more, and therefore warranted more careful treatment. But Ferelden refugees? They should be lucky to get passage at all. And that was exactly it: no one was complaining they were stuffed into damp, dirty cargo areas and given 5 blankets for the whole group of them, because everyone was too grateful to be alive and away from the Blight.

The exploitation of it pissed Eli off. He wondered how many of these families gave the captain everything they own to be here. But Eli’s rage at injustice turned cold when his eyes fell on Carver again.

Carver had barely said a word since Bethany died. He was leaned against a support and his arms were crossed over his chest. He was staring off at nothing. Eli didn’t say anything either. How could he? What was there to say that could make her death better?

“You should get some rest, while we have the chance,” Eli prodded him.

Carver just shrugged. He finally tore his eyes away from the spot on the far wall and turned to Eli. Initially it looked like Carver meant to glare, but the gaze melted to concern by the time it reached Eli.

“What?”

“Maybe you should rest. You look pale,” Carver frowned.

“What? I feel fine.”

—

A few hours later Eli did not feel fine. All the color had drained from him and he was shaking badly on the ground. He held himself and grit his teeth. He tried to hide it but that didn’t work for more than ten minutes.

“Eli? Honey, what’s wrong? Carver! Carver, what’s wrong with your brother?!” Eli hated the fear in his mother’s voice.

Carver rolled him over and held his shoulder. “Shit, Eli you look like crap,” he muttered. He put a hand on Eli’s forehead and Eli flinched away from how cold it was. “You’re burning up. I said you looked pale!”

“M’fine,” Eli insisted, but even in his fevered haze he could hear how weak his voice sounded.

“He can’t be— it cant be the Blight, Carver-!”

“Quiet, Mother. It’s not the Blight, it can’t be, theres none of the other signs.” Carver tried to keep his voice down, but their mother was nearly hysterical. Other refugees looked over.

“He’s got the Blight?”

“Who has the Blight?!”

“The Blight, here?!”

Eli felt Carver’s hand on his shoulder tense, the grip grow tighter.

“If he’s got the Blight we need to get him off the ship!” One said finally, the words Carver was afraid of. There was resounding agreement around the ship.

“He doesn’t have the Blight! And we aren’t throwing my brother off the ship!”

“He’ll give us all the Blight if we don’t!”

“He doesn’t have the Blight!” Carver roared, and stood to his full size. That quieted the room. “He does not have the Blight and I will not let you kill him because you’re afraid.”

That settled it. Carver hunched back over Eli, and removed his jacket to drap over him.

“We need to break your fever. Hang on.”

—

Eli didn’t get better the next few days. His fever kept rising, and he could barely contain groans of pain.

“Do something, Carver,” Their mother kept saying. Carver was doing all he could. Eli couldn’t stand the thought of eating in his condition, but Carver forced bread into his mouth and forced him to chew and swallow.

“We have to break his fever. We need the blankets, he can sweat it out,” Carver whispered. But no one would give up their blanket, especially for a sick man. Carver pulled off his shirt too and draped that over Eli. He took the one blanket they’d snatched for their mother and put that one too. Then he added his own weight and heat, laying half over his brother.

“Carver—“ Eli croaked

“I’m not losing you too. Fight this, Eli!”

Eli hated how scared Carver looked, staring down at him before he slipped into unconsciousness.

—

Eli woke again to darkness. Darkness and some odd faint glowing, dully colored blobs where Eli thought lamps must be. He felt warmth again, his fever lessened, and the intolerable aching wasn’t so intolerable anymore. But he woke in darkness.

“Carver? Carver, what happened?” Eli whispered

“Eli, Maker, you’re awake…” Carver’s voice was right next to his ear, and it made Eli jump.

“What happened?”

“Your fever spiked and you passed out, but it’s ok, I think it finally broke, you’re going to be ok— What’s wrong?” Eli had made a choked noise and he couldn’t quite find Carver’s face. Carver’s heart sank. “Eli, what’s wrong?”

“I-I can’t see. Carver, I can’t see..!”

The last image Eli had was Carver’s face over him, looking more terrified than he had on any battlefield. Eli was sure if he could see, that image would be appearing again. 


End file.
